User blog:Scottick/Scottick's Favorite Music: beatmania IIDX
DISCLAIMER: NO ONE IN THIS WIKI OWNS THE FOLLOWING VIDEOS AND SONGS. Directory: beatmania IIDX (RED-Pendual) beatmania IIDX (SPADA-SINOBUZ) Touhou Project Touhou Project Arranges ...never thought I'd see the day when I'd eat those words. But yes, it finally happened. I now have a page for depositing my favorite music. Now you may have noticed that the title specifies what game this page will cover, and that's for a reason: first so that I don't end up making a page filled with so much data it takes a hyperadvanced PC that runs on the souls of orphan children to load it in less than a minute, and also so that I have more organization if I bother to make more Favorite Music pages. But for now, I want to focus on... This series is what I've been getting into now, and is probably the reason I have not bothered to write more ATWCN. Some of you may be wondering when I'll get back to writing it, but others may be asking... What is beatmania IIDX? It all started back in 1997 when Konami started a subdivision called g.m.d. (later renamed BEMANI) to create a DJ simulator arcade game called "beatmania." The game itself was very influential (it can even be said that beatmania defined the modern rhythm game), yet very little is known about the original beatmania series. Two years later, Bemani would create a spinoff of the series known as "beatmania IIDX" (by the way, IIDX is supposed to stand for "2 Deluxe"). Although the only difference between the games was two extra buttons, IIDX managed to explode in popularity and survive even to this day with 23 installments as of writing (beatmania ended after 13 installments and another spinoff attempting to revive beatmania's 5-key gameplay had only five installments before ending as well). So why did IIDX survive while its other brethren did not? According to my vague understanding of the series, I can confirm two reasons. First, the music. beatmania started off as a DJ simulator, so the songlist was expectedly comprised of house and techno, you know, the kind of stuff you'd hear at clubs. IIDX in contrast deviated more from the typical DJ genres in favor of trance, hardcore, and a variety of other genres. Basically, IIDX stopped being about DJ simulating and more about cool, cool music (which is obviously the reason I'm writing this page). The other reason IIDX lived on? It was HARD. Yes, 2 extra keys makes that much of a difference, and keep in mind this series has 23 installments (and maybe counting). That's more than enough time to evolve a rhythm game with 7 keys and a turntable into the Dark Souls of rhythm games (Actually, Bemani in general can be summed up as just that. They make arcade rhythm games, what did you expect?). But perhaps I should just shut my yap right now and let the following list talk these two reasons for me. Just a few disclaimers before the list: I am a total noob at these games (I can barely fail level 5 songs) and I tend to make stupid mistakes and say stupid things, so forgive me if I get anything wrong. I'll go ahead and mention all the installments I can, but only to the extent at which I know the songlist. I'll only mention songs based on their arcade series appearances, so if there's any console exclusive songs I miss out on, tough. One more thing, the only requirement for this list is that the song appeared in IIDX at all. 1st Style (and Substream) Honestly, the only reason I know so many 1st Style (and Substream) songs is because the 1st Style cabinet was designed to link with DanceDanceRevolution 2nd Mix, which could play every song in 1st's songlist. The start of the series was...well, it was a start. This was still around the time when beatmania was still sort of a DJ simulator, but that does change in the IIDX series soon. 5.1.1. So how about we start the list with something slow and depressing? Yeah, I can't see how that could go wrong! 5.1.1. does have quite a bit of significance outside its somber but beautiful piano. First, omitting tutorial songs in later installments, it's the easiest song in the series, and just listening to it, you can tell why. 5.1.1. is also named after the room that the IIDX team worked in, which is kinda cool. I say the easiest, but that's not the case. The Hyper and Another charts for this song are particularly brutal, and it's going to take a while for a beginning player to even get an A on the Normal chart. I guess it's more like the first level 1 song in the series, and for how tough it is, it kinda sets the tone for the series. Dr.LOVE There's this Early Installment Weirdness that 1st Style still has from the original beatmania. I can't explain it, and Dr.LOVE is one of those sonjgs that still has that weirdness. So why do I still like when dance pop would normally turn me away? Well, it's catchy and it has a cool piano backing it rather than overly intrusive techno. Plus it's one of the only songs I can actually pass on Another (though that doesn't mean much since the Another chart is rated a "3"). GAMBOL Oh GAMBOL, you are a song that will forever live in infamy. The strange funk beats and guitar riffs already push the song into "somewhat unique" territory, but what drove it to memetic (at least in the IIDX community) status was one game-breaking bug: its timing. Somehow, GAMBOL's Hyper charts had a stricter timing window than usual, handing out unsuspecting players Goods constantly. Did BEMANI know about this? Yes. What did they do? Make a joke of it, of course! The timing was never fixed in the arcade installments for a long time, and although console players did get fixed timing, they were also the first to experience an Another chart that was next to impossible to win. Heck, GAMBOL's ''Another chart could be ''the hardest chart in the series, and not even legitimately. Later installments would even include an easter egg that would apply the GAMBOL timing to other songs, as if you didn't think the game was hard enough. Oh yeah, the video's kinda hilarious, too. GRADIUSIC CYBER dj Taka's first IIDX song, and also the first Gradius song in IIDX. Sure, it's a bit rough around the edges, but right off the bat, you can already see some of Taka's musical skills show in this song. I'm still not sure what this song has to do with Gradius apart from some samples based on the game, but the fast-pace and hard beats are enough for me to enjoy GRADIUSIC CYBER. Still not sure what "DIGI-ROCK" is, though. Prince on a star "He gets lost the more that he tries..." Sometimes in life you'll just run into something you just can't explain. Here's an example: why I like this song. I just can't give you a straight answer why. My best guess is that even with some Engrish here and there, the song still manages to create an atmospheric mood where the lyrics couldn't. I dunno, you just need to listen for yourself and make your own judgement. RUGGED ASH It took me a few listens to understand why everyone in the Western fanbase (or at least everyone in the Solid State Squad forums) was so obsessed with this song. Now I understand perfectly. It's a pretty cool jazz piece with a snazzy piano and...whatever that wind instrument is. Fun, but I wish it was longer, or that at least a full version that's not a remix was released. 20, November 20, November is another song that had a big reputation behind it. The song sounds cool and elegant enough, but the real reason people remember it is because it's named after DJ Nagureo birthday, the 20th of November. Besides being a frequent contributor to IIDX (until 10th style, probably), Nagureo was also the producer of the original beatmania. That kind of importance is enough for IIDX fans to celebrate the 20th of November as an important holiday, because...it is. Ska a go go Yes, IIDX even had ska. It's certainly one of the weirder sounding songs in the series, especially since you can't understand whatever the vocalist's saying. Ah well, as far as ska goes, it's pleasant oddity. Also, whoever made the stepchart for this song in DDR oughta be slapped for the ending stream of arrows. Seriously, how did BEMANI expect anyone to survive that?! gentle stress That piano. No seriously, that piano. According to the game, this song's actual genre is drum n' bass, but I don't think I'm really hearing that as much. Still, it's a hectic but chilling song that is true to its name: gentle stress. THE EARTH LIGHT Man, for a 1st Style song, THE EARTH LIGHT sounds so ahead of its time. Really, later on this kind of genre would dominate IIDX, but for now it's just a killer hardcore techno track. L.E.D. (or L.E.D.-G, L.E.D. LIGHT, or whatever variation of that name exists) is an important figure in IIDX, but since we're only covering the arcade releases, we won't get to see that until later. Mostly because at this time he only tended to stick to working on the console ports. 2nd Style Most of the IIDX songs I know, especially for the first 10 installments, are only through DDR so there aren't really any songs worth noting in 2nd Style, at least for me. .59 .59 is read as "tengoku," which means "heaven." Now does this song sound heavenly to you? Doesn't really to me, but maybe you could see it as heavenly through the use of those classical instruments. They certainly sound beautiful enough to create a heavenly feel. Since there's not much else for 2nd Style, I'll take this time to briefly discuss this song's composer, dj Taka. As you saw earlier, Taka made his debut in 1st Style, but this song was his first true hit in IIDX. From this point, Taka would be the Producer for the IIDX series until 10th style, when he would step down to be a sound director for a while. So yeah, to say Taka's a bit important to IIDX is an understatement. Trust me, you'll be seeing his songs a lot throughout the list. I Was the One If you're a Beginner/low-level Normal player just like I am, then you better get used to good-cool's songs, because apart from 5.1.1., they're the only songs you're gonna hear for a while. That being said, I Was the One is one of my favorite low-level good-cool songs, mostly because it's not disco. For how much I rave on about IIDX's more hardcore songs, it's nice to listen to something slower and more relaxed. 3rd Style Once again, the only songs I have here have all appeared on DDR, which was the only way I got to know them. era (nostalmix) "Drum n' bass?" To me this feels a little more like trance, but whatever. Does it matter what genre a song is? I'll still listen to it and like it all the same. era (nostalmix) really is that kind of song that just fills your with energy. Not hype energy, mind you. Just...emotional energy. Okay, I can't really explain songs too well, which is okay because the songs can just speak for themselves. Holic Dark, hard techno. Just the kind of techno I like. Holic is fast-paced and filled with all that dark energy that some hardcore songs in later games will develop. If you start to notice some German techno in there as well, that's normal. The artist, TaQ, grew up in Germany. Now that I think about it, do any of you know what German techno is? I mean, I don't really know either. Until Holic came around. LEADING CYBER Whatever "digi-rock" is, it apparently involves the hardness of rock incorporated into drum n' bass, or at least that's my interpretation. Just like Holic, LEADING CYBER is dark and fast-paced. Seems to be the theme of 3rd Style. Oh, and you should also check out the Another version. Sounds way different than the original, doesn't it? I especially love the drum solo in the Another version. 4th Style ...what does "TRIP THE DEEP" mean? ABSOLUTE Another Taka song...is it official by now that Taka's a prominent figure in IIDX? ABSOLUTE''ly! ...tough crowd. Ahem. Well, what can I say? In contrast to the last two songs, ''ABSOLUTE is filled with joyous and light energy. It's a nice break from the hardcore stuff. Clione kors k makes his first debut in IIDX with this song, though we won't get to see more of him until much later. For now, Clione is an absolutely beautiful trance piece. Everything from the techno, to the piano backed with orchestration, and heck, even the video is amazing. Great first impression, kors k. I look forward to getting to your other songs later on. DXY! Of all things TaQ chose to name this song, he chose "DXY!" Apparently it's supposed to be pronounced "dixie" and was named after the descriptive sounds Taka and TaQ would use with each other. Yeah, I don't really get it either. But what I do get is a techno track that's the most techno at this point in IIDX history. And yes, it sounds awesome. empathy Atmospheric is once again the word that comes to mind with empathy. The orchestration in particular is what gets to me, and the song in general invokes a powerful emotion response that can be described in that "e" word I don't want to use because it's overused enough already (and no, it's not "empathy"). Did I mention that TaQ was a musical genius yet? starmine This may very well be Ryu☆'s most iconic song in IIDX, and for a good reason. It's relatively fast-paced and full of happy energy. Go figure, given the genre is "HAPPY HARDCORE," huh? You know, when I was making this blog, I was actually hesistant to put starmine in because I had no idea what to say about it. Then again, the same sentiment applies to a good amount of the other songs on this list, so what excuse do I have anymore? FLOWERS for ALBION I know this song's supposed to be the ending theme for 4th Style, but it seriously sounds so out of place compared to the rest of IIDX, and that's saying something. But "out of place" is not the same as "bad," no, as a matter of fact, this song is absolutely beautiful. It also serves to show off Taka's skill with pianos, which by the way are his favorite instruments. 5th Style Strange how the tagline for 5th Style is "IIDX OF THE NEW CENTURY," even though 5th was released in 2001 when 4th Style was released back in 2000. Oh well. Abyss Okay, riddle me this: What kind of genre is "INTELLIGENCE?" Anyways, Taka once again displays his piano skills in a song that is atmospheric, the song is entracing, yadda yadda yadda. Who wants to hear my incoherent yapping? I'll let the song talk for me. Radical Faith TaQ makes a "Big Beat" genre song. That explanation sums up the song. You've already heard more than enough about TaQ's musical genius by now, so once again I'll shut my trap and let the song do the talking. RIDE ON THE LIGHT (HI GREAT MIX) Finally, a song I can actually talk about and a new IIDX artist! The song itself, first off, has some cool beats and an uplifting feeling to it the whole way, which fits its name. High energy and high spirits, it's an awesome song of highness (well, not that kind of highness...or royalty, either)! And before you ask about the artist, no, that's not the same Mr. T that stars in The A-Team. That would've been funny, though. RISLIM Really, it's this song's remix, RISLIM -Remix-'' that gets more attention due to Azure of Solid State Squad forums's freakish obsession with the song, but for me, the original ''RISLIM is much better. Why? I suppose because the remix's composition is boring compared to the original's captivating synths and the mostly untouched vocals. Still my words This one's a rather notable TaQ song for two reasons: it has vocals, and it's not as technological as his traditional style. It's for these reasons, though, that I like it a lot. I guess I just have a thing for old school ambient/trance like this, and I don't mind. THE SHINING POLARIS There's something about trance done in L.E.D.'s hardcore style that really gets to me. If only I could explain it. For me it's like the best of both worlds to have hardcore trance like this. Sana's vocals also compliment the song perfectly, so there's that. V Ah yes...V''. A cool progressive rearrangment of Antonio Vivaldi's ''"Winter" that also happens to be the center of a IIDX community joke. If you like classical music, it goes without saying you'll like V''. And for everyone who played the console versions of IIDX from 5th to 10th Style, they had no choice but to like it, cause it just kept returning each game! in my eyes If this sounds familiar to you Silent Hill 2 fans, then it should. This song was used in the ever-infamous Dog Ending (which if you haven't seen yet, then go play Silent Hill 2). So what about ''in my eyes as a IIDX song? It's a cool trance piece and the singing complements it well. Sync Outphase is the name for Taka and TaQ collaborating. The result of their combined musical skills is a trance song that is truly something atmospheric (I sure like that word). By now we're starting to slowly approach the hardcore and trance that defines modern IIDX, but for now, we have Sync. 6th Style For me, 6th Style is one of those installments that once again doesn't have much that's notable enough to talk about. Nevertheless, here I go. Colors (radio edit) "Feeling blue, I'm thinking of you, Oh, I was a fool to let you walk away Tears in my eyes today make my world...The color of blue." Nothing quite like Taka trance with Taka-quality pianos, huh? As expected for a Taka song of this time, the techno and pianos are fused together to create a great melody. The lyrics are also cool and fit the theme of the name. Even the video fits the theme and is just as amazing! Argh, Taka, why must you keep making some of the best quality songs?! fly through the night Mr. T takes on trance with his brand of techno. The result? A cool, slow-paced, and beautiful track. The title really does fit the song. Listening to it feels like, well, flying through the night. After the loud and speedy songs that have pretty much populated this list, it's nice to take a break in the form of something slower and more emotional. G2 Behold, the first IIDX song to fully harness horror! I feel like it was an interesting choice to make such a evil-themed song drum n' bass, though I can see how such a fast genre would fit. Plus those eerie strings add a layer of creepiness that make the song more effective. I also have to give props to VJ GYO for the video. Seriously, all the effects added into the already unnerving animation freak me out a bit. LOVE IS DREAMINESS Hey look, L.E.D.'s back on the list with another hardcore song! And yes, it's certainly hardcore. Happy hardcore, that is! So get listening and let yourself be swept away into the sky! Oh man, that's so cheesy. What am I a writer for?! NEMESIS D.J. SETUP, or rather, Taka using TaQ's sound tools, makes his first debut in IIDX, and NEMESIS could not have been any better first start. The unique sounds of TaQ under Taka's composition result in a song as good as their collaborations under OutPhase, though it's more technological than it atmospheric. It also happens to make one of the most difficult songs at this point in IIDX history! That's always fun. SOMETHING WONDERFUL Another L.E.D. song! This time it's "epic trance," and I won't argue with that. Sure, it hardly sounds like L.E.D.'s signature hardcore, but I can forgive it because just like LOVE IS DREAMINESS, the song has that uplifting feeling to it that leaves you in that entranced light mood. The guitar in the middle also helps in adding to that feeling. The Another version has lyrics, but since that's the only difference, I won't bother posting here. THEME OF DENJIN J "Terror, vile, and hatred!" And so starts L.E.D.'s "Denjin Jaeger" series of songs; NRG songs themed after a henshin series with a robot that can turn into a motorcycle. Oddly, this the only song in the series where the video even shows Denjin J turning into a motorcycle at all. As for the song itself, it's as energetic and catchy as NRG gets while injecting some of L.E.D.'s signature hardcoreness. VJ ARMY Much like how some of IIDX's composers are called DJs, the guys who work on IIDX's videos are called VJs. So one day, good-cool comes up with a brilliant idea: make a song where all 4 VJs during the production of 6th Style collaborate on the video. It's genius and a nice homage to the VJs. Since the whole idea was that the VJs each worked on their own separate section, the song shifts between four genres and you can tell when each VJ's part comes in. A brilliant idea, a brilliant song, and a brilliant video. What's there not to like? NIGHT OF FIRE EUROBEEEEEEEEEEEEEAT! ...ahem. So here's a question: How many of you know what Initial D is? No one? Okay. But let's say we do. The first song that would pop into many people's heads when Initial D gets brought up (besides Runnin' in the 90's, but that's another list for another time) would most likely be NIGHT OF FIRE. How could it not? If you ever wanted to know what eurobeat was like, this song pretty much sums up classic speed eurobeat. I understand there's still some people trying desperately to pretend disco never existed, and I'll understand if you don't like eurobeat. I do, if only because it somehow fits with Japanese drift racing. Don't ask me why it works, it just works! 7th Style We're getting close...close to modern IIDX music. So besides some more musical growth, 7th Style introduced the "Extra Stage." Basically, if a player did really good during their normal arcade run, they would gain access to play one more song, which was usually the hardest song in that installment. So yeah, the difficulty spike started by here, too. A So way back in 3rd Style, Taka got the idea to make a song that started off slow and complex, but suddenly turned fast and hectic. The only trouble was, no one in the team thought that players would be good enough to pass it, at least not until 7th Style, obviously. What can I really say? It's a beautiful mix of classical melodies and drum n' bass beats that represent the speed yin-yang the song has. Also, DDR fans love this song. Can't blame them. Burning Heat! (Full Option Mix) For many IIDX artists, Gradius is a musical inspiration, so don't be surprised by the amount of Gradius songs that appear on this list. The original Burning Heat! was already a cool enough song, but leave it to Mr. T to remix it into both a nostalgia trip and a doggone good song. You also just gotta love the video, it's a well-made homage to Gradius 2 that...just listen to it, okay?! Words are starting to fail me (like that hasn't been happening since the start)! Tomorrow Perfume I know I never go over them, but even the interface themes in IIDX are sweet. Tomorrow Perfume is a perfect example of that by being a full song made of the entire interface theme of 6th style. And yes, it is everything from 6th style's intro to the music select and the ending theme, all untouched with the exception of the transitions. Such an awesome trance piece, as expected from Taka. He can make awesome pieces even without pianos. ZERO-ONE Another Mr. T song, and this time it's one that even he doesn't get! Well, the story goes that during production of 7th Style, Mr. T still couldn't find out what other song to add to the game, when a strange melody suddenly came to him. The shock he recieved out of the melody while he was riding an electric train brought birth to the genre "Electroshock." Like I said before, I don't really care about what genre it is, just as long as it sounds good. And when it comes to straight-up techno, Mr. T can make a song sound really good! HEARTBEAT "Dance to the heartbeat!" You know what I think this list needs? MORE EUROBEEEEEEEEEEEAT! So...if you didn't like NIGHT OF FIRE, chances are you won't like HEARTBEAT. Actually, I think you'll like it a little more since HEARTBEAT is a lot less cheesy than NIGHT OF FIRE was. Again, probably just me. By the way, I'm not sure exotic cars were meant for drift racing. Then again, Burnout lets you use stock and F1 cars in street races, so what do I know? MAX 300 For DDR players, MAX 300 was a song that made history in the world of stepping. For IIDX players, this was just the first Extra Stage song in IIDX history. It's fast, it's unforgiving, and it's a cool hardcore song. Of course, both fandoms nowadays look at this song and laugh at how they used to believe it was the most impossible thing in the world, but way back then, being able to clear this song was a big deal. Take a look at DDR gameplay for MAX 300 and you'll know why. Kakumei Another classical reinterpretation, and this time it's a collaboration between Taka and NAOKI, who by the way was the producer of DDR at the time. So what happens when you take Fredric Chopin's "The Revolutionary Etude" and leave it in the hands of these two prominent BEMANI artists? You get something amazing. Again, classical fans will love this song and everyone else...well, they'll love this song, too. 8th Style Finally, a tagline that kinda makes sense again. airflow Leave it to Mr. T to bring us an appropriately titled song. It just has that happy and highly uplifting feeling to it that just makes it hard to be in a bad mood when you listen to it. So just start playing and let yourself fly again (Ugh, I thought I was done with the cheesy lines)! Attitude So after we were done with the floaty cheerfulness that was airflow, why not keep oursleves flying high in the sky with Attitude? Sure, why not! Any good trance song will have the effect of, well, entrancement, and Attitude fills that effect perfectly. Plus the synths sound cool. I'm not exactly sure what Y&Co. means when he says that hardcore trance fans will say that this song sounds more like eurobeat. I mean, I can hear the eurotrance, but I can't identify a single trace of eurobeat here, but ah well. Maybe I just listen to too much super eurobeat to know what actual eurobeat is like. Blame Another good-cool song...and guess what? IT'S EUROBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAT! Well, it's not exactly the eurobeat I think of, but it's still a great song. It's got a fast pace, it's got lyrics linking to love (albiet heartbreak), it's got the racing girls again (something tells me these eurobeat songs exist only so that VJ GYO can recycle the same animations in different songs), and it's got cool guitars. In general, Blame is a cool song on the darker side of eurobeat. Also of note, apparently this song is notorious in the IIDX community for its evil charts. I guess I can understand why? Dissolve I'll never get sick of trance. It seems to be just a universal constant that I will like retro trance no matter what, and that's probably just for the nostalgia. Dissolve does everything right, from cool sounds to the atmospheric tone that really do feel like going into another world. Huh. "Atmospheric." I keep using that word. I don't think I know what it means. dual control "GARAGE HOUSE," huh? Well it certainly sounds high-tech for a house song. Once again Mr.T proves to be a phenomenal artist, and without having to resort to high intensity, either! I could definitely see this song being part of the original beatmania's line-up. Giudecca "Psychadelic techno" is right. This is a really trippy and really awesome song, proof of Taka's skill as a musician. His techno has definitely improved since GRADIUSIC CYBER, as Giudecca shows. It invokes a feeling of being provoked on top of the psychadelia, which makes sense considering that "Giudecca" is the the 9th circle of Hell in Dante's Divine Comedy. LAB This song's a little too energetic for its own good. Not that that's saying much, given how energetic IIDX rave songs tend to be. Really, there's not much to say. LAB is a rave song that speaks for itself, and has an awesome video, to boot. Man, I miss IIDX videos like this, the ones that kinda make sense for its song and actually go with the mood of the song as well. You know, like a proper music video. OUTER LIMITS There used to be a not-so clever segue from the preceding songs to this one. It's gone now. True to L.E.D.'s style, this song is heavy, fast-paced, and ominous. As I've said before, just the way I like my techno. If you've read by fanon character pages (and it's obvious that most of you had), you may recognize this as HUMAN's theme. It's safe to assume you know why it is. The Strong Jaeger "All systems...go!" Denjin J returns to fight a rival robot. To prove he means business, we now have an amped-up NRG song. The Strong Jaeger is full of energy, as the genre "NU-NRG" should imply, and it sounds cool harnessing it all. There is one gripe I have with the song, though...it's video. It starts off really cool, especially with the build-up to the duel, but then...you can tell when I stop taking the video seriously. Oh well, the video was made around 6th Style, and the Denjin Jaeger series never did have videos anyone could take seriously, so what can you expect? thunder Taka strikes again, and this time without as much of his signature pianos! thunder is rather involved for a house song, starting off with strings and pianos. The vocals also add more emotional energy into the song, making it just soulful enough to really hit, but still relaxed enough to still be house. It sits in a middle ground, but still works well. WAR GAME Why am I putting a hip-hop song on one of my lists when I don't like hip-hop/rap? Well, because WAR GAME's different. It's not very urban for a hip-hop song; in fact, it feels more like being out in a dangerous zone. For some, the city landscape is a war zone in itself. I'm thinking now that I might have to worry about language in this song, but then again I don't really need to. I mean, take a listen and just try to tell me what he's saying. Your guess is as good as mine. Sakura So we've already seen classical reinterpretations of songs on this list, but how about a remix of a Japanese folk song? Leave it to NAOKI to make it sound as traditional, yet modern, as it does. It's beautiful in the classic Japanese sense and also a heck of a boss song for both DDR and IIDX. Try listening to the original "Sakura Sakura" and see just how different this song is to the original. xenon Mr. T's first (and maybe only) One More Extra Stage, and it's another "Electroshock" song. You know what that means: more awesome techno beats, and more teeth-grinding difficulty! Intensity is a standard, as it is for a song named after a rare noble gas. From what I've observed, chemistry is the source of many clever tidbits, so be sure to pay attention in your chemistry class if you want to sound smart! 9th Style No taglines or witty remarks this time. Let's just get one of the most despised arcade installments in the series over with. I say "despised," though this is speaking in terms of the arcade version. It was...glitchy. Real glitchy. Thanfully, the console port avoided such a terrible fate, though there is still the problem that nearly every song relies on last-minute difficulty spikes. But, what would IIDX be without them? Abyss -The Heavens Remix- As expected of a Ryu☆ remix, Abyss -The Heavens Remix-'' is more energetic than the original song it was based on. In that sense, I regard this remix as almost an entirely different song of its own, especially since it only contains the beginning melody from the original ''Abyss. If you thought the original Abyss was too slow or if you prefer trance with a little more energy, this is the song you might be looking for. BRIGHTNESS DARKNESS Thus was born unto the world "ROCOCO TEK." What I'm guessing this oddly named genre is supposed to be is techno infused with classical elements. Given that the theme of this song is the ominous feeling of uncertainty as one shifts between light and dark, this...works perfectly. I also love the creepy voice in this song. "Brightness...darkness..." Never before have those two words sounded so chilling. Karma TaQ strikes again with another dark song, this time with drum 'n bass as the genre. There doesn't seem to be as much energy in Karma, but it definitely has darkness on its side. Lots of darkness. moon_child I dunno about that song production note, actually. Seems a bit...risque. Anyways, onto moon_child. Oh man, is moon_child cool. The piano, the guitars, the radio samples, the old-school techno, not to mention the cool video. The song overall fits its name, employing a night-time mood combined with childlike wonder. In a way, this is what I feel that Prince on a star should've been like. STAR FIELD Sometimes pure trance is exactly what we need. And as someone who grew up listening to a lot of trance, I'm a bit inclined to like this song. A well-done piano, cool synths, and other things I can't quite describe. Notice how in most of these 9th Style songs I don't have a lot to say? It's weird... Distress Techno beats, guitar riffs, German vocals, and orchestration. Yup, this TaQ song fits its genre of "MIXTURE" well. It's only a remix of 5th Style's opening, too! Such a big deal for a song from 4 styles ago, but would we really want to miss out on a great TaQ song? Quasar Oh man. What a song. What a video. What a One More Extra Stage. Taka and TaQ deliver once again with a legendary trance collaboration, and it's even more atmospheric than Sync was! To be honest, I never thought that was ever going to happen. 10th Style After this mix we'll start getting into the modern half of IIDX known for great hardcore, inhumane difficulty, and songs that I'm actually more familiar with! Just one more set of retro techno to go! 5.8.8. Thought 5.1.1. was sad? Well, here's 5.8.8. to make you even more depressed! Or maybe it'll just calm you down to a standstill. I just feel like it's a bit somber. I say somber, but I think the more technical description is ambient. Like 5.1.1., 5.8.8. has both beauty and significance, as the song was named after the new room the IIDX team moved to. You can even feel some rememberance for that 511 room the team first worked in, or maybe that's just me again. Daisuke Yeah, the song and the dancer in the video have nothing to do with each other except in name. And for once, I'm glad we finally have a EUROBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAT! song with a video that's not racing girls. So what about the song Daisuke? Well, what am I supposed to say? Y&Co. pretty much got the eurobeat formula perfected by this song, and the vocals are just as amazing. This won't be the last we'll be seeing of Daisuke, though. DoLL "A white feather floated down into this world..." For a song that sounds the way it does, an anime-esque video fits it well. The melody of the song itself is great, but once you get to understand the lyrics, you can understand another layer of the song that adds to the beauty of it. Or you can always just treat it like a Gundam knock-off opening song. Either/or. Freezing atmosphere Let's just add Twin AmadeuS to my list of favorite IIDX artists... I mean, what is there not to like about Freezing atmosphere? The awesome violin, the guitars, the atmosphere they all paint. It's amazing. I can totally imagine looking out at a snowy winter morning listening to this song (strange as it is to type that sentence and be a Southern Californian). GRADIUS -FULL SPEED- Another Mr. T Gradius remix, and this time it's a medley of Gradius 1 songs! Is it any better than Burning Heat! (Full Option Mix)? In my opinion, not quite. Burning Heat! will forever remain my favorite Gradius remix and Mr. T song, but GRADIUS -FULL SPEED-'' comes close with a stronger nostalgia factor, especially since the synths sound eerily close to the actual Gradius game. Innocent Walls And once again TaQ appears on the list. Like ''DXY!, Innocent Walls has an interesting story behind its name. The song was composed while TaQ was recovering in a hospital. During his stay, he overheard someone screaming "Don't scream at the innocent walls!" (or something like that) and TaQ thus got the name for this song. Now I'm not too sure where the innocence or walls come into this song, but I do know one thing about TaQ techno: it's full of energy. Innocent Walls also happens to be part of a IIDX community inside joke that I can't mention for certain reasons. Just search for Innocent Walls on Remywiki, you'll find out why (hint: it has something to do with how horribly difficult the song's charts are). Changes Even though Changes technically comes before Innocent Walls alphabetically, I still wanted to put Changes after Innocent Walls. Because this is TaQ's last composition for IIDX and on this list. This last song is his sendoff from the series. And what a sendoff it is. An ever-changing trance tune that reflects, well, change. Now I know this sounds like a memorial in remembrance of TaQ, but he's not actually dead. He's still making music, just not for BEMANI anymore. His unique style of music lives on. No. 13 Taka strikes again with another techno reinterpretation of a classical piece, specifically J.S. Bach's "Invention No. 13 in A minor, BWV 784." ''Why couldn't early classical pieces have shorter and simpler names... This is one of those intepretations that's less orchestral and more techno based. Not to say there isn't any orchestration in the song, but it seems to be a bit overshadowed by the techno beats. Still, another good work by Taka that shows respect for classical. Narcissus at Oasis Narcissus was a Greek figure, and like many Greek myths, there is a certain English word derived from him: narcissist. But as Ryu☆ states, the song is more about the flower that came from his death than Narcissus himself. Really, the piano dominates this song and creates a scene of the beauty of the narcissus. The video is also good for those of us who lack a photographic imagination to create that image ourselves. SPACE FIGHT I think I can summarize everyone's first reactions to watching that video: "'What." I can't blame you for thinking that. The song itself is neat and the lyrics seem to have been going for a somewhat serious tone, but the video kinda shatters that in a hilarious way. It's hard to believe that this song was composed by Silent Hill composer AKIRA YAMAOKA. Nothing against Akira, though, I'm not saying artists should limit themselves only to their most popular forms. If anything, this song is proof that he has quite the sense of humor. 1st Samurai sampling masters MEGA is also known for his work with Namco composing music for the Ridge Racer series, but here he is as a commision artist in IIDX, making an Extra Stage song no less! Just listen to that shamisen, it's insane! Perhaps that's what's supposed to be the "samurai" part of the song, cause it's just as tough as the Japanese warrior of honor. Well, you need to at least have that kind of toughness to be able to clear the song anyhow. One More Lovely Okay, Taka, let me level with you. I love your songs, and One More Lovely is no exception. The Taka-quality pianos are there, the crazy fast, hyper, and happy synths are, well, happy, and the triangle (or chimes, or whatever they are) was an interesting addition, too. But... '''WHY DID YOU HAVE TO MAKE THIS SONG SO HARD, EVEN IN BEGINNER?! I'm not kidding here! This is probably the hardest song I've ever played on the Beginner difficulty! And in that case, I don't even want to think about playing its actual charts. But what can you expect from a OMES? By now I've realized that this page already has more than enough data crammed into it, and there are plenty more IIDX songs to post and discuss here. So for the sake of everyone's patience and computer processers, I'll post the other half of this IIDX fest on another blog post right here. And for those of you with a penchant for unorganized chaos, part 3 is right here. See you there. - Scottick Category:Blog posts